Melbourne City FC Head Coach John van’t Schip says the message to his side was to go out enjoy the occasion as they finalise their preparations for an enticing Melbourne Derby Semi Final.
As his side prepared for Friday’s battle, the Dutchman believed tomorrow’s match is going to be a milestone moment for the Club.
“The message is to enjoy it and to use this moment as a stepping stone in the Club’s history,” van’t Schip said.
“They’re professional players and they want to achieve the highest and we have enough players in the team that know what that means, as well as the coaching staff.
“We are prepared to play in another game and that is to play a Grand Final but to do that, we have to win and there is a team against us that has played the best football all season and that’s not going to be an easy task but it’s going to be a great challenge.”
The message is clear, they just have to enjoy this big game and the boys are up to it,
van’t Schip, who will be coaching in his 11th Melbourne Derby, felt all the pressure would be on Kevin Muscat and his men after their stellar form during the regular season but felt his side aren’t going into the contest without expectation.
“The boys know that the pressure is more on Victory and we should go out there and give them a hard time,” van’t Schip said.
“Of course there is an expectation on us to play well and we will go out there to win the game but we also know that Victory are the favourite and they are playing in front of their home crowd.
“That’s why we say everything that we can achieve now is a big bonus and we’re going for that.”
But the Head Coach feels his message will resonate with the side and everyone at the ground as they prepare for arguably the Club’s biggest match.
“The message is clear, they just have to enjoy this big game and the boys are up to it,” van’t Schip said.
“We’ve showed in the past we can play good games against them and this is not going to be any different.
“We know it’s a finals game so its going to be a little bit bigger but we are ready and the boys are fit and focused so we just have to enjoy the game and go for it and give the best we have.”
Melbourne City FC meet their destiny on Friday night as they face Victory in a Hyundai A-League Semi Final. Tickets are still available through ticketmaster.
